Watch What You Hear: Penelope’s Dream Of Twenty Geese

Psychoanalysis has been used with some success to explore literary works, but surprisingly little has been done with Homer. Validity aside, the main technical problem is that in order for the analysis to be reliable, it must be done in Ancient Greek.This book is an attempt to present to a lay audience, with no prior knowledge of Greek– or psychoanalysis– a rigorous psychoanalytic interpretation of the Homeric dream of twenty geese, with careful attention to the distortions and associations of the dream elements. In this new analysis, it can be shown that Penelope’s wish is not for her husband to return and kill the suitors– but neither is it for some trite repressed desire to be with any of the suitors. Using insights gained from the dream’s analysis, it also becomes possible to elucidate Homer’s intent for the Odyssey: not as a sequel to the Iliad, but as the redemption of its tragic hero.